Bring the same structure to your dreaming like you do to your training, and watch magic happen at the races.

by Mark Allen

Goals get us going. They are targets that draw us out of bed, because we know that if we fall short, we fail ourselves. They are the dreams that fire us up and turn the work we're doing into the most exciting thing we can think of—even if to others the work seems tedious. Going back and forth in a pool for months on end might seem boring to some, but to those of us who are dreaming of a big goal in triathlon, it's a vital nutrient in our training diet.

Primary goals

Most people who race IRONMAN 70.3 or IRONMAN triathlons have goals. The concrete ones are the easiest to put in place. "I want to better my time from last year." "I want to place higher in my age group than two years ago." "I want to set a new bike PB." Those are very measurable goals to have.

These are also the goals that, unfortunately, can be demoralizing if a race starts heading in the opposite direction. It could be a stronger field than you expected. The weather might not be as favorable as the last time you did the event, making a PR out of the question. Maybe you get a flat tire and spend several precious minutes dealing with it. Whatever the reason, having the feeling that it’s going to be impossible to achieve your one tangible, measurable goal can make you want to throw in the towel and quit.

Coach clincher: Your coach can help you refine this essential, primary goal, based on your training metrics. They can help you make sure that you're setting yourself up for success before the gun even goes off. Yes, you may want to win your age group, which is a great goal; your coach will be able to look at your training data and help you understand whether that is within the realm of possibility. If it's not, it is good to keep that goal on the shelf for down the road as you progress, and come up with one together that still stretches you, but also one that you'll be extremely proud of when you do achieve it. (If you don't have a coach, find one here!)

Contingency goals

There are ways to add to your first, all-consuming goal that will give you something to shoot for, no matter what. Of course it's important to have that "shoot for the stars" goal that you and your coach have been working towards, but it's wise to add some "contingency goals" that still have meaning to you even if the top tier goal gets sideswiped in the process.

One example of an additional goal could simply be to manage every challenge that comes along during the day with steadiness and calm. That means not freaking out if you get a flat. You just change it. It means modifying your nutrition to make it keep working if your original plan is making you nauseous. Managing every challenge means bringing yourself back to a place of quiet every time your mind starts to yell at you that it’s not worth moving forward. Giving your best no matter what will have meaning—especially if that was specifically one of your goals.

Coach clincher: These types of "add on" goals are great to set with your coach, who knows where things have fallen apart before, and how you managed those situations. They can help you build secondary goals around more seamlessly resolving those challenges, should they happen again. An example is if your nutrition failed last time. Target this secondary goal with solutions—such as better managing a nutrition failure so that you can stay in the race.

Next level goals

Say the wheels just completely come off your race and your goal evaporates before you. This is where a "last level" goal can come in. My "last level" goal was to just finish—to get to the line and complete the distance. That too has worth. If you have to walk the marathon even though you have the training and the talent to run every step, then so be it.

Getting to the finish has merit and value because you had to overcome a weaker side of your character—the voice in all of us that in those long, tough miles walking comes up with about a thousand reasons why it we should stop. But you don't because you have a goal that addresses the worst-case scenario: Make it to the finish line.

Coach clincher: Use your coach to help you target this type of goal one as well. They know what would be the toughest thing for you to overcome. Have a goal as well as solutions should this be where things end up. And then, if you do find yourself in that situation, you’ll already know that overcoming this would be huge, and you’ll already know the approach you will use. For some it could be about getting kicked in the swim. For others, maybe it's dealing with winds or having to walk a large portion of the marathon. Whatever it is, with the help of your coach you'll see that this isn't a failure, but a chance to rise above even the toughest situation.

I had these three levels of goals in every IRONMAN I did. I explain to the athletes I coach how important it is to have several goals for their races. That is how to set goals that really work to keep you going—to help you make it over the bumps along the way on race day. I used all three to keep me going in every IRONMAN I did including the ones that I won.